Posts Tagged ‘Steve Aschburner’

March 14, 2015 · 4:28PM

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When last we left Rajon Rondo and Rick Carlisle, at least on a national headline-grabbing scale, the former was lipping off to his coach and the latter was firing back, prompting their boss, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, to suspend the mercurial point guard for a game.

But after Dallas’ home rout of the Los Angeles Clippers Friday, Rondo and Carlisle were making nice – much nicer – in comments that ought to be encouraging to fans hoping for a postseason run that’s more long than short.

It’s been nearly three months now since the Mavericks acquired Rondo from Boston on Dec. 18, enough time that Carlisle seems more willing to flip the keys of the offense to the point guard. Here’s how Tim McMahon of ESPNDallas.com chronicled it:

“He’s really developed a good sense for our team — when to just push it, when to get into something,” Carlisle said. “He really understands the guys that he’s playing with.”

Rondo had been attempting behind the scenes to get more leeway to call plays before his blowup with Carlisle, which occurred after the point guard ignored a play call from the bench, prompting the coach to call a timeout and shout across the floor at Rondo. They both later attributed the disagreement to poor communication.

Rondo said he has been gradually given more responsibility to call plays since returning from his suspension and felt especially comfortable in the role Friday night, when he guided the Mavs to their highest-scoring outing of his stint with the team.

“The trust is becoming more and more better between Coach and I,” Rondo said. “It’s tough to give a guy the keys to the car when he first gets there.

“Tonight, we were on the same page a lot. We talked before the game, as far as the play calling that we wanted to stick with. We were very locked in this morning during the shootaround, and it carried over into the game.”

Carlisle had a similar power struggle, minus the public fireworks, with point guard Jason Kidd during their first season working together in Dallas. Carlisle relinquished most of the play-calling responsibilities to Kidd midway through the 2008-09 season, and they won a title together two seasons later.

More perspective on Rondo and his, er, challenging personality was provided by Doc Rivers, the Clippers coach in Dallas on Friday, as well as Rondo chum Glenn Davis. Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram wrote about that:

From Rivers’ standpoint, there’s a fine line a coach must walk with Rondo.

“Rondo is strong-willed, but he’s a good kid, and I think people get that mixed up,” Rivers said. “He’s got an amazing amount of passion, and he is a ssssmmmaaarrrttt player. I mean, smart. So that stuff happens.”

“I think Rick Carlisle has to know Rondo, and he just doesn’t know Rondo,” said Davis, who was Rondo’s teammate in Boston from 2007-11. “Rondo is the type of player, you know you want him to do this, you want him to do that, and he’ll make sure it gets done. You’ve just got to tell him what his options are out there, because he’s sort of like a quarterback.”

Statistically, Rondo still is a mess as a piece of the Mavericks’ offense. He’s shooting 41 percent at a time when the league average field-goal percentage is 44.8 percent. So cool it with any Bob Cousy references – it’s true that the Hall of Fame point guard made 37.5 percent of his shots in his career and never topped 39.7 percent. But the league average only cracked 40 percent in Cousy’s final four seasons.

Cousy also took nearly twice as many shots as Rondo – 17.8 per game vs. 9.7 – and averaged 18.4 points to Rondo’s 10.7. The Celtics’ first great point guard hit 80.3 percent of his free throws, too, compared to that team’s most recent great point guard and his ridiculous 31.7 percent this season, which makes him avoid trips to the line entirely.

Still, if Rondo and Carlisle can see eye-to-eye on the rest of the offense, good things might be in store. When Dallas beat Miami for the 2011 championship, Kidd averaged 7.9 points on 36.1 percent shooting (while hitting 87 percent of his free throws).

NEWS OF THE MORNING

No. 1:Westbrook a stat-seeking missile? — It is considered bad form for a restaurant server or anyone else in the service industry, frankly, to flat-out ask for a tip. But it was OK in OKC for Russell Westbrook Friday night, his suggestion to the scorekeepers paying off in nice, round statistical fashion for yet another triple-double. No one here at Hang Time HQ is accusing Westbrook of lowering himself to RickyDavis levels, and there often have been different interpretations applied to assists and rebounds (remember all the home-cooking accusations about Jazz great John Stockton‘s dimes in Salt Lake City games?). But Royce Youngreported on Westbrook’s big numbers against Minnesota, then concluded that they were bonafide. Or at least justified:

The Thunder were enjoying an impressive blowout over the young Minnesota Timberwolves, and Westbrook was going to be left to watch the final couple of minutes a single rebound short. That’s when he took matters into his own hands. He looked over at the Thunder’s official scorekeepers, holding his arm up.

“Tip?” he said, nodding his head. “Tip?”

A quick conference at the scorer’s table and right around the time the buzzer sounded on the Thunder’s 113-99 win, Westbrook suddenly had his triple-double: 29 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists. His eighth of the season, sixth in the last eight games, and the first player since Jason Kidd in 2007-08 to have eight or more in a season (Kidd had 13).

The rebound appears to be a tad dubious, an offensive board awarded with 2:35 left where Westbrook went up to tip back a missed 3-point attempt by D.J. Augustin. Westbrook was given a missed shot on it, so everything is on the up and up, but still, hard not to raise an eyebrow.

So, was he campaigning for the rebound or what?

“Uhh, no,” Westbrook said.
…
The idea is that stat-padding breeds selfishness, a label Westbrook already battles against, but his play actually separates the two things entirely. The stats are a means to the end, a necessity in winning. Westbrook is single-minded when it comes to winning, and with that in the bag on Friday, there’s nothing wrong with wanting another bullet point added to the growing MVP resume.

Because while an extra “10” in the box score is pretty arbitrary, it means a lot when you start talking history. Westbrook became only the fourth player in the last 30 years to record six triple-doubles in a season with at least 25 points (LeBron James, Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson). As he continues to build an MVP case, that’s another feather in his cap. And we can’t act as if individual accolades don’t matter. It’s all part of the game, and Westbrook knows how to compartmentalize and separate that from the bottom line.

Westbrook actually nearly had a quadruple-double with eight turnovers, giving him an eye-popping 27 over his last three games. It has been a stat that has sort of been glossed over because of how much he’s doing for the Thunder, along with how he’s giving the ball away. It’s not really the classic out-of-control Westbrook that’s barreling down the lane and leaving his feet with no plan. It’s forced pocket passes, soft post-entry passes, unselfish extra passes fired at point-blank range.

“I do know one thing, I know I need to stop turning the ball over. I can tell you that much,” Westbrook said, unprompted. “It’s so frustrating, trying [to] find and make passes and turn the ball [over], but at the same time, we won, so I’ll go back to the drawing board and take care of it.”

***

No. 2:Pacers’ George treading lightly — Maybe Paul George had a late-night phone conversation with Derrick Rose. Maybe his anticipated return from the serious leg fractures suffered last August was a diversion all along, meant to take Indiana fans’ focus off its team’s struggles for most of this 2014-15 season. Or, most likely, George has seen the Pacers’ recent tear and move into playoff position in the Eastern Conference as the proverbial ain’t-broke object no longer in need of his fix. The Pacers’ All-Star wing player sounded a little conflicted Friday about making a comeback for what’s left of this season, less due to his own physical condition than to the team’s encouraging play of late. Mark Montieth of Pacers.com reported on George’s quandary after the player’s weekly media chinwag:

“I’m on the fence,” he told reporters following Friday’s light workout at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. “They’ve come together. To shake up the chemistry and add another body, I don’t want to be that guy who destroys what these guys have going. And then there’s part of me who thinks I can definitely help turn these tough games into games we have fully under control.

“It’s difficult. It’s a difficult point right now…but we take it day to day.”

George still spoke optimistically of the physical improvement he’s made since breaking his leg on Aug. 1. He experiences some soreness “but I push through those days.” He’s worn an elastic sleeve on his right leg the past two days in practice because his leg feels better when he does, but he has no significant pain in the formerly broken leg.
…
George had thrown out a mid-March return as his goal during interviews over All-Star Weekend last month, but isn’t guessing at dates now. Coach Frank Vogel earlier in the week had nixed the possibility of him playing on Saturday, but nobody is saying yes or no to future dates. The Pacers’ first game next week is Monday at home against Toronto. They follow with road games at Chicago on Wednesday and Cleveland on Friday, and then have a home game against Brooklyn on Saturday.

“Is there a chance you’ll play next week?” he was asked.

“I have no idea,” he said.

If and when he does return, George will come off the bench and play spot minutes. He likely would continue to play as a reserve, potentially strengthening a unit that’s already one of the best in the NBA.

***

No. 3:Jazz’s Gobert: from clunker to hardware — Rudy Gobert, Utah’s blossoming 7-foot-2 French import, didn’t generate a lot of excitement when he first appeared on the NBA scene. As ProBasketballTalk.com’s Dan Feldmantells it, Gobert – despite remarkable size and wingspan, definite NBA attributes – was nursing a sore knee that hurt his performance in workouts. But whatever perceived lack of athleticism caused him to plummet to the bottom of the first round in the 2013 Draft, Gobert has more than made up for with his play lately. In fact, Feldman makes a case that the Jazz reserve big man could be a legit contender for multiple awards this spring:

Gobert is averaging 7.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game. In 11 starts since Utah traded Enes Kanter, Gobert’s averages have jumped to 10.5 points, 14.1 rebounds and 3.1 blocks. The Jazz are 9-2 in that span, including wins over the playoff-bound Trail Blazers, Spurs, Bucks, Grizzlies and Rockets

If the 2013 draft were re-done – with consideration to Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nerlens Noel, Victor Oladipo, Michael Carter-Williams, Mason Plumlee and everyone else – Gobert makes a compelling case to go No. 1 overall.
…
Now, in his breakout season, Gobert is a legitimate contender for three awards – Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year and Most Improved Player.

He might not win any, and two would be tough. Three would be unprecedented.

Just six players have won two of the major player awards – Most Valuable Player, Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year and Most Improved Player – in the same season:

• Darrell Armstrong, Sixth Man of the Year and Most Improved Player in 1999
• Hakeem Olajuwon, Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year in 1994
• Michael Jordan, Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year in 1988
• Alvin Robertson, Defensive Player of the Year and Most Improved Player in 1986
• Wes Unseld, Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year in 1969
• Wilt Chamberlain, Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year in 1960

***

No. 4:NBA season in ‘twilight time?’ — Certainly there’s churning and jostling for playoff position taking place within the East and West conferences. But on a macro level, we know who most of the playoff teams are likely to be, same as we know who most of the lottery teams are this spring. That’s why longtime NBA writer Mark Heislersuggests in the L.A. Daily News that the 82-game schedule is too long, leading to this stretch of March and April where the NCAA game grabs basketball’s spotlight and even swipes Charles Barkley:

Most good teams are resting stars, easing injured players back in — this makes two weeks in a row that the Clippers’ Blake Griffin is expected back — and otherwise lying in the weeds.

All that remains is securing the final playoff slots.

Three teams are vying for the last West slot: New Orleans (just got Anthony Davis back) Oklahoma City (soon to get Kevin Durant back) and Phoenix (unfortunately not getting anyone back).

Then there’s the East dogfight for No. 7 and 8 among the Pacers, Heat, Hornets, Celtics and Nets. Two will get in even if they’re on pace to win 39-37-36-35-33, respectively.

That makes 13 teams assured of playoff slots with eight more aspiring to, even if five are in the farcical East race.

Lining the bottom of the cage are the seven marking time until the lottery (Lakers, Knicks, 76ers, Timberwolves, Magic, Kings, Nuggets).

That leaves the Jazz and Detroit, another team of comers that started late. The Pistons’ problem didn’t turn out to be paying Josh Smith $30 million to leave, but waiting until they were 5-23.

That’s all there is — with five weeks until the playoffs. In other words, thank heavens for the NCAA Tournament.

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> If I told you a sleeper team was going to pull off a major upset in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, which team would you tag to make that prediction come true: Bucks, Pacers, Hornets or Heat?

Steve Aschburner, NBA.com: Pacers, though I say that without trying to predict the first-round matchups. Indiana already is a different team that most foes have faced this season, and if Paul George is able to return and blend into what’s already working, the Pacers could bite a top seed in the behind. Now, if they wind up eighth and Atlanta stays at No. 1, that’s a tall order because the Hawks came close to upsetting them a year ago and are better now. But given the Pacers’ pride and desire to salvage what had been a mostly lost season, I’d take them very seriously.

Fran Blinebury, NBA.com: The Bucks with their stingy, No. 2-rated defense, 3-point shooting ability, rising youth in Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Michael Carter-Williams and the been-there-done-that smarts of coach Jason Kidd. They could be a we-having-nothing-to-lose handful.

Scott Howard-Cooper, NBA.com: Maybe I’m just getting caught up in the good vibrations of the moment — stringing together wins, Paul George back on the practice court — but I’ll go Pacers. Same problems scoring, but Indy defends and rebounds. Tough not to like that as a starting point for an upset, obviously depending on the matchup. I’d put the Bucks a close second.

Shaun Powell, NBA.com: Honestly, I don’t like any of their chances, but I’ll go with the Bucks. They’ll likely have a better seeding and therefore a more evenly-matched first round. Plus, they’re young with fresh legs that’ll come in handy in late April, and their coach, Jason Kidd, has been there and done that in this league.

John Schuhmann, NBA.com: Indiana is the clear pick. The Pacers have been the best team in the league (both in regard to record and point differential) since Feb. 1. They have a great defense and an offense that has improved with a healthy George Hill in the starting lineup and Rodney Stuckey coming off the bench. They have a coach and a roster with playoff experience, and maybe one of the league’s best players coming back. But I would still have a hard time picking them against Atlanta, Chicago or Cleveland.

Sekou Smith, NBA.com:I’m tagging the Pacers and relishing the idea, based on the standings at this moment, of a Cleveland Cavaliers-Pacers No. 2 vs No. 7 first-round matchup. Talk about a major upset, this one would be colossal. Paul George comes back. Roy Hibbert rediscovers the All-Star within. Coach Frank Vogel gets his revenge for last season’s meltdown and the team’s staggering fall from grace. Doing it at the expense of long-time foe LeBron James would only add to the intrigue of a storybook scenario for the Pacers … and it is indeed an absolute fantasy. I don’t think there are any upsets to be had in the first round. Not based on what we see in the standings right now.

Ian Thomsen, NBA.com: The Pacers are the East’s poor-man version of OKC. Based on their current trend with their best players – including Paul George – returning to health, then no one at the top of the standings is going to want to see Indiana.

Lang Whitaker, NBA.com’s All Ball blog: I have a hard time pegging the Pacers as an underdog, even as long as Paul George is out. This is a team with guys like Roy Hibbert, David West, George Hill, Luis Scola — quality NBA veteran players. I know that they’ve been without George this season and have dealt with other injuries, but if anything, to me the Pacers have the pieces to be better than they’ve been for most of this season. And then it’s not if George returns, it’s which George might return — I don’t expect to see the George who was one of the best players in the NBA, because that will take time to find and get back to, even just mentally. But I do think if they can get back any version of George that provides depth and is able to knock down an occasional open jumper, that could be a huge postseason help.

Each week, we’ll ask our stable of scribes across the globe to weigh in on the most important NBA topics of the day — and then give you a chance to step on the scale, too, in the comments below.

> An attorney for the NBPA says the union will fight to lower the age minimum during the next round of collective bargaining, and says that forcing players to attend college for one year is “completely ridiculous.” Agree or disagree? And why?

Steve Aschburner, NBA.com: Disagree for multiple reasons.One, it’s not “completely ridiculous;” that’s simplistic rhetoric for a topic worthy of legitimate debate. Two, the NBA is within its rights to set hiring policies. It doesn’t have to provide all jobs for all high-school graduates who want to get paid to play basketball. Getting NBA scouts out of high school gyms is a worthy objective. Not starting multimillion-dollar , guaranteed contracts for players so raw their deal is nearly up by the time they’re able to perform is a better one. I don’t give a hoot about the impact on NCAA basketball, but the NBA is a better league when its players (with rare exceptions) have developed more and grown up a little.

Fran Blinebury, NBA.com: Because it is arbitrary.Because we live in the United States of America, where the right to make a living should not be inhibited. And because one year of college does nothing to help the quality of either the NBA or college games.

Scott Howard-Cooper, NBA.com: If the union wants to take a stand on bargaining away the jobs of current members, that’s on them. I can’t imagine it would be a very popular one among the rank-and-file players, primarily the many players whose goal will be to stay employed. Opening the door to more teenagers will increase the difficulty. On the specific topic at hand, though, my position for years has been to lower the age limit, while understanding it’s not the majority opinion.I don’t buy the part about “completely ridiculous” because there is a credible case to be made for requiring a prospect to be 19 years old in the calendar year of the Draft. I just think it doesn’t stand up. Also, point of clarification, no players are being forced to attend college for one season. Go overseas and make money. Go to the NBA D-League and work on your game while making gas money on top of it. College is a choice, not a demand.

Shaun Powell, NBA.com: The NBA isn’t restricting anyone’s ability to play basketball right out of high school. Anyone can go the Brandon Jennings route and play overseas and make money right away. The NBA is a big-boy league and, therefore, is only right to protect the quality of the game by imposing the current rule. One year of college isn’t a lifetime prison sentence. It not only allows 18-year-olds to spend another year learning the game, but maturing as young men, which sometimes gets lost in the desire to cash in immediately.

John Schuhmann, NBA.com: The league and its teams should invest more in the NBA D-League, so that it’s a full 30-team system with salaries that can compete with those in Europe or China, or at least make it easier for the country’s best non-NBA talent to stay home. The D-League is where players can go out of high school, get paid, get scouted, and become NBA-eligible in one or two years. More players getting paid more money, without taking any out of the pockets of the players who are already in the league, sounds like a good deal for the union. And if the best 18-and 19-year-olds were in the D-League, the NBA and its teams would get a return on their investment via ticket and TV revenue.

Sekou Smith, NBA.com:I’m a believer in the freedom of choice for anyone old enough to take care of him or herself without the aid of a consenting adult.So I’m fundamentally opposed to the idea of an age limit beyond a prospect’s graduating senior class in high school (or the international equivalent). I agree with the union’s premise that it’s completely ridiculous to force anyone dreaming of playing in the NBA to do anything other than abide by the same rules we ask anyone else who reaches the age of adulthood to abide by. Where we part ways, however, is when we talk about the value placed on the college experience. I think any experience gained while away from the comforts of adolescence is extremely valuable. And I’m thinking about more than just basketball. Some of these guys need to grow up a bit before being thrust into the fishbowl. Bottom line? Allow a prospect to enter the league after completing high school and then give them the opportunity to make their own, grown-up choices about what to do with their own lives.

Ian Thomsen, NBA.com: The union is fighting on behalf of high school seniors who, for the most part, will contribute very little as rookies because of all they have yet to learn. The union is not thinking about the larger consequences for the NBA overall, because that is not the union’s job. My opinion is that the NBA would benefit from a minimum age of 20 years, which would make sense especially if the NBA D-League became a highly-competitive league that helped players to develop and mature while teaching them how to win for the sake of the team. That scenario would create a better rookie class in addition to more jobs for the union.

Lang Whitaker, NBA.com’s All Ball blog: It is completely ridiculous, in that it just seems so random and arbitrary. Why one year of college? And why is the NCAA so complicit in this — the players don’t even have to really go to class to maintain eligibility for one year. At the same time, I get it from the player’s point of view, in the sense that the later guys get into the NBA and get on the clock with their rookie contract, the older they are when they finally hitfree agency. This means they might only get one big free agency contract instead of two big deals, which could be a difference of tens of millions of dollars. So are the guys in the league today really OK with passing that money along to guys who are in high school today? Maybe so. But I’d be surprised if they don’t want some for themselves. Either way, it doesn’t make sense.

Each week, we’ll ask our stable of scribes across the globe to weigh in on the most important NBA topics of the day — and then give you a chance to step on the scale, too, in the comments below.

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> The NBA says it is considering spacing out the 82-game regular season, and San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is already on record saying he won’t be working in July. Are hot dogs, apple pie and basketball a good mix on Independence Day?

Steve Aschburner, NBA.com: NBA in July? No thank you. The season goes deep enough into the calendar as it is, players already are squeezed for offseason recovery and down time, there is lots of business already requiring the summer months (draft, Las Vegas, free agency, FIBA). The obvious fix is to shorten the preseason by a week to 10 days, play three or four tuneup games instead of seven or eight and start the NBA schedule a week before Halloween.

Fran Blinebury, NBA.com: The idea is a bigger dud than a wet firecracker on the Fourth of July.The season is already long … too long. With many players choosing to play for their national teams — Tony Parker and Nicolas Batum have already said they’re in for France at EuroBasket next summer — the offseason time to rest and heal would be shortened further. On one hand, the commissioner talks of trimming off a few preseason games to provide more down time. On the other, he has already lengthened the All-Star break to a week to make less. The only truly serious solution to the problem of debilitating fatigue is simple — a shorter schedule, say 66 or 70 games. That would require owners netting less money from fewer home games and require players taking a corresponding cut in contracts. Both sides, of course, are due a windfall when the new TV contracts kick in. But neither side is willing to forgo a dollar. So it is all talk, some of it just silly, with a few cosmetic changes.

Scott Howard-Cooper, NBA.com: Sure.It will look weird at first and feel strange on the body clock because other big events will have to be pushed back –the Draft, NBA Summer League –but that’s nothing compared to the benefit: better play. Fewer back-to-backs or three games in four nights is a good thing for rosters and, therefore, a good thing for fans. There has to be some give as most people agree the extended All-Star break is a valuable rest stop and the idea of a little more breathing room in the schedule is a positive. Turning another page on the calendar, and it might not since that would mean the season going some two weeks longer now, would be a small price to pay.

Shaun Powell, NBA.com: No, no, no! Basketball isn’t meant to go beyond Father’s Day, let alone July 4th.Stretching the season is a sure way to turn off some hardcore fans (casual fans would flee like Russell Westbrook on the fast break). If the owners and players and networks really cared about the quality of the game, they would agree to play a 70-game schedule, eliminate exhibition games, start the season by mid-October, eliminate four-games-in-five-nights, reduce back-to-backs, and return to best-of-five for first-round playoff series. Which means, it’ll never happen because money always gets in the way.

John Schuhmann, NBA.com: I don’t like the idea of pushing into July.I’m all for limiting the preseason to just one or two games and starting the regular season in mid-October, though. That should eliminate four-games-in-five-nights scenarios and reduce the number of back-to-backs. And I think a 72-game schedule (three games against each team in your conference, two against the opposite conference) would help alleviate wear and tear and put extra value on every game.

Sekou Smith, NBA.com:I’m with Pop on this one. There is no need to drag the NBA season into July. That’s Summer League time anyway. I understand the need, for some, to always be about the business of advancing things and tinkering with things for the sake of tinkering. Growing the game (the number of teams, the size and scope of the pool of players, viewership around the globe, etc.) has always the been the rule. And we’ve all benefited from that growth. But bigger isn’t always better, at least not in this case. If we’re going to mess with the NBA schedule, the move needs to be pushing back the start of the regular season until Thanksgiving or Christmas and shortening the 82-game season by roughly 12 games. I don’t think there is any doubt that fans would appreciate the quality of that sort of NBA season over the quantity that Pop (and so many others of us opposed to a 4th of July NBA Finals) is balking at with the spaced out 82-game regular season.

Ian Thomsen, NBA.com: Everything changes. Of all the changes that have transformed the NBA since the 1979 arrival of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird — overhauls of salary structure, media coverage (including social media), refereeing, global drafting and on and on — the idea of tacking on a few more days is almost not worthy of argument. As the money and the demands grow ever larger, it’s inevitable that the season will keep growing longer.

Lang Whitaker, NBA.com’s All Ball blog: To be honest, nothing other than Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum are a good mix on Independence Day. The NBA season need to be done by then, and preferably a few weeks before then. The obvious way to fix this — to space out the schedule while ending the season before July — is to shorten the season. It doesn’t have to be radical — maybe you could shave off 6 or 8 games. Or just cancel the preseason and back up the start of the regular season by a couple of weeks. Either way, whatever you do, I think we all agree that our Independence Day should be properly celebrated by sitting back and watching Randy Quaid invoke the words of his generation while flying a fighter plane nose-first into an alien spaceship. Not by watching the NBA.

March 7, 2015 · 9:41PM

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Bobby Dandridge was part of an NBA “Big Three” before anyone called them that.

And he did it twice.

Early in his career of 12-plus pro seasons, Dandridge was a lithe scoring threat at small forward for a Milwaukee Bucks team built around Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson. Nine years in, he joined a Washington Bullets front line that was anchored by Elvin Hayes and Wes Unseld.

Dandridge – whose jersey No. 10 was to be retired Saturday night by the Bucks during a halftime ceremony of their game vs. Washington at the BMO Harris Bradley Center – was an integral part of those teams that went to a total of four NBA Finals, winning titles in 1971 (Bucks) and 1978 (Bullets).

The outsized reputations and achievement of the terrific tandem with whom he teamed at each stop might make Dandridge, by comparison, seem strictly part of the supporting cast. But the 6-foot-6 product of Norfolk State and 45th player picked in the 1969 Draft earned four All-Star selections from 1973 to 1979, averaged 18.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 839 games and was even better in the postseason (20.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.7 rebounds in 98 appearances).

“I think Bobby was more significant than a role player,” Jon McGlocklin, a guard on the ’71 and ’74 NBA Finals teams and a longtime analyst on the Bucks’ broadcast crew, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Bobby could do everything. He was as good defensively as he was offensively.”

McGlocklin remembered Dandridge as a great locker-room guy, helping to keep the team loose by teasing the other players (“everybody except Oscar”). He also provided material for the Bucks’ creative play-by-play announcer, Eddie Doucette. Dandridge’s jump shot, which he often released on the way down, was dubbed the “pancake jumper,” while he himself was called “The Greyhound” by Doucette.

Dandridge didn’t like the nickname then and still doesn’t. But he told the paper Friday: “That had to do with speed and quickness and endurance. I was a superbly conditioned guy even though I was 6-5, about 175 pounds. I was fortunate to come to a team like Milwaukee that was looking for quickness.”

Arriving in Washington in 1977, Dandridge joined a team seeking a match-up for scoring stars such as Julius Erving and George Gervin, whose teams (Philadelphia and San Antonio) the Bullets had to beat en route to their 1978 championship vs. Seattle.

“Bobby came in, he knew the offense, he had already won a championship, he was experienced,” Washington coach Dick Mottasaid a few years ago for a story on that team. “It was always nice when we had Bobby Dandridge and we were going to play Dr. J or George Gervin. He basically neutralized all of the small forwards in the league.”

Dandridge, 67, spent four seasons with the Bullets before returning to Milwaukee for 1981-82. He made some headlines with the unusual free-agent contract he signed there; having played in just 68 games his final two seasons in Washington, he agreed to a Bucks deal that paid him a base salary of $40,000 plus per-game rates of $2,750 if he suited up and played vs. just $275 if he wasn’t available that night. It sounds like a contract that would be illegal under current CBA rules and it didn’t last long back then; Dandridge was waived in late November.

Here’s another little-known factoid about Dandridge: He’s the one who suggested that NBA newcomers could use some help navigating the league. That idea led to the league’s rookie transition program, which enables young players to go to school on their predecessor’s experiences.

Dandridge, who worked for a while with the NBA players’ association, told the Virginian Pilot in June 2013: “I consider that to be as great a contribution to the NBA as my basketball playing days.”

Dandridge was expected to be joined at Saturday’s ceremony by his wife, Debra; daughters Shana, 39, and Morgan, 21, and son Sivad, 36.

He becomes the eighth Bucks player to have his number retired. Those who preceded him: Robertson (1), Junior Bridgeman (2), Sidney Moncrief (4), McGlocklin (14), Bob Lanier (16), Brian Winters (32) and Abdul-Jabbar (33). He wore No. 10 in Washington too, but that subsequently was retired in honor of Earl Monroe.

March 4, 2015 · 3:32PM

All those teams that imagined Ray Allen as a catch-and-shoot threat in the corner, adding a late-season, potentially game-changing acquisition just in time for the playoffs, well, they and their fans can go back to daydreaming about Powerball and MegaMillions.

“Over the past several months, I have taken a lot of time to deliberate what is best for me,” Allen said in the news release. “I’ve ultimately decided that I will not play this NBA season. I’m going to take the remainder of this season, as well as the upcoming offseason, to reassess my situation, spend time with my family and determine if I will play in the 2015-16 season.”

That last part might be reworded as: “…see what sort of crazy free-agent offer some needy team makes to bring me back.”

Allen will turn 40 in July. As recently as three seasons ago, he ranked fourth in 3-point shooting (45.3 percent) and eighth in true shooting (60.7 percent) and he was the NBA’s fifth-most accurate foul shooter in 2012-13 (88.6 percent).

He’s always had the work habits of a monk and, especially since altering his diet in recent seasons, the body fat of a greyhound. But stepping back into the NBA after a year’s layoff, at Allen’s age, would be the sort of thing only Wilt Chamberlain or Karl Malone ever pondered. Allen has been healthier by far than Steve Nash, a Class of 1997 draftmate, and Nash – still on the fringes of the Lakers while they pay him what’s left of his $9.7 million this season – broke down last season after 15 games with a bad back.

As for performance, Allen averaged 9.6 points and 26.5 minutes for Miami last season, helping the Heat to their second straight NBA Finals with him aboard. He made 37.5 percent of his 3-point attempts in the regular season and 38.8 percent in 20 playoff games.

But the 10-time All-Star from UConn, who also played for Milwaukee, Seattle and Boston, had a modest 12.8 player efficiency rating (PER) both in the regular season and playoffs. Taking a career high 56.9 percent of his shots from 3-point range meant he shot a career-low 2.2 free throws, pro-rated to 36 minutes per game.

In a league in which every GM and coach is looking for an edge, interest in luring back Allen this season was high. “Ray has received enormous interest from a number of NBA teams throughout this season,” agent Jim Tanner said. “We will communicate with interested teams as Ray makes a decision for the 2015-16 season.”

NEWS OF THE MORNING

No. 1:Smith calls Hawks fans ‘bandwagoners’ — Josh Smith brought an enormous bundle of skills to Atlanta and hung out his shingle for the Atlanta Hawks for nine years. But he eventually came to represent unfulfilled potential and a little bit of indulged stardom, to the point his services no longer were required. Smith left in 2013 to sign a fat free-agent contract with Detroit and has been a target ever since of however many fans cared to populate Philips Arena. The difference this season is that there are more of them, and their booing rankled Smith, on a mediocre night individually, in his return Tuesday with the Houston Rockets. Here’s Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com:

The interplay between Smith and the Philips Arena crowd was lively throughout the night. Smith, an Atlanta native who played his first nine NBA seasons with the Hawks, was booed loudly whenever he touched the ball. The catcalls grew louder in the third quarter, after Smith drained a 3-pointer that rattled around the rim several times before dropping in. Smith then shushed the crowd by placing his finger over his lips as the Hawks called timeout.

Despite qualifying for the playoffs in Smith’s final six seasons in Atlanta, the Hawks never finished in the top half of the NBA in attendance. This season, the Hawks are faring better at the gate and averaging just more than 17,000 per game, their highest total since Smith came into the league.

Smith was a polarizing player during his nine seasons in Atlanta. Chosen by the Hawks with the No. 17 pick in 2004 draft, Smith dazzled fans with his acrobatics, shot-blocking and athleticism. But despite being only a 28.3 percent 3-point shooter, Smith attempted more than 942 shots from beyond the arc as a Hawk. Toward the end of his tenure, a groan would emanate from the crowd at Philips Arena whenever he elevated for a long-range shot.

February 28, 2015 · 7:14PM

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There are sports injuries too gruesome to watch in replay – Joe Theismann’s, Shaun Livingston’s and Paul George’s leg fractures all spring quickly to mind – and then there are those you have to look once, twice, even three times to comprehend.

Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook‘s fracture to the zygomatic arch bone in his right cheek qualifies as one of the latter. Westbrook got kneed in the face by Thunder teammate Andre Roberson on an inbounds scramble late in their club’s loss at Portland Friday in a game that saw him record his third straight triple-double. Westbrook, already on the floor, lay on his stomach momentarily. After he got up, photos showed an odd indentation or depression in his face. Royce Young of ESPN.com passed along the day-after basics following surgery Saturday to repair Westbrook’s face:

He has been ruled out for Sunday’s game at the Los Angeles Lakers and will be re-evaluated next week to determine when he can return to play.
…
Westbrook had his third consecutive triple-double against the Blazers, scoring 40 points with 13 rebounds and 11 assists. He had a historic February, averaging 31.2 points, 9.1 rebounds and 10.3 assists, numbers that only ever have been totaled by Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson.

Kevin Durant is set to be re-evaluated for a minor procedure he underwent last Sunday and could return as soon as this coming week. In seven games without Durant in February, Westbrook averaged a triple-double — 31.2 points, 10.0 rebounds and 11.3 assists.

Westbrook, 26, is averaging 26.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 8.1 assists in 45 games this season. He missed 14 games in November because of a fracture in his right hand.

Newly acquired D.J. Augustin will start in place of Westbrook on Sunday against the Lakers.

Young also had speculated on what this injury might mean to Westbrook’s well-known sense of fashion:

If Westbrook can play on and has to wear a mask, that thing is going to be FIERCE. Probably shopping for a leopard print one right now.

But here’s the really pertinent stuff:

Meanwhile, Cleveland also will be without its All-Star point guard Sunday at Houston. Kyrie Irvingcontinued treatment Saturday on the left shoulder strain that caused him to miss the Cavaliers’ game at Indiana Friday, his team announced, and will not join the team for its matinee clash with the Rockets. Irving’s status will be updated Tuesday morning prior to the Cavs’ home game that night against Boston.

Craving some good news on the NBA health front? The Miami Heat and their veteran power forward, recovering rather nicely from the condition that ended his 2014-15 season, were happy to oblige late Saturday afternoon:

Chris Bosh (blood clot) has been released from the hospital. Coach Spoelstra says Chris is “home and feeling better.” #GetWellCB

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NEWS OF THE MORNING

No. 1:Some Kevin-on-Kevin love — No, not that Kevin Love. We’re talking Kevin love, as in Kevin McHale‘s admiration for Kevin Garnett, the straight-outta-high school gamble who paid off big for McHale when he was starting out as VP of basketball operations for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Garnett was the face of Minnesota’s franchise for most of his 12 seasons there and, on the eve of his return to the Wolves in practice and a welcoming press conference Tuesday, one Hall of Famer – before coaching in Houston against his former employer – talked about the Hall of Famer-to-be, as chronicled in theMinneapolis Star Tribune:

“I’m happy for the Timberwolves organization,” McHale said Monday. “For a lot of years, he was, of course, the face of the franchise. It sounds like they’re happy. He’ll do a good job with those guys.”

…

McHale was asked Monday if it seems right that Garnett return to his NBA beginnings.

“That’s up to Kevin,” McHale said. “So many people do different things. I’m happy for him if he’s happy. He’s a good kid. I spent a lot of time with him. I think it’s great when that can work out if it really works out for both parties. It’s great for the Timberwolves, and Kevin must have felt good about it, otherwise he wouldn’t have signed off on it.”

Garnett waived a no-trade clause minutes before Thursday afternoon’s NBA trade deadline. He arrives Tuesday not the player he once was, but rather a man who has seen it all, done it all and can help team a young Wolves team mature.

“Kevin loves basketball,” McHale said. “He’s competitive. He always has been. He has a wealth of knowledge. He has played a lot of big games, won a championship and he’s not afraid to talk. He’ll say a lot of things.”

Rockets veteran forward Corey Brewer thought he’d hear many of those things when McHale drafted him to play for the Wolves in 2007. But Garnett was traded just weeks later.

“It’s great for the franchise,” said Brewer, who like Garnett was brought back to the Wolves but traded for a second time in a December deal that sent him to Houston. “KG, he’s the face of the franchise, still to this day even though he left for a while. I’m happy for the franchise. I’m happy for him to go back. I think he’ll have a great impact. Those guys need a guy like KG. They’re young. They’re all getting better. They need that voice, that leadership.”